Verde Hot Springs and The Mogollon Railroad Tunnel

In June of 2006, my friend Mike C. and I wandered up to the area west of Pine Arizona to check out the demolition of the power plants on Fossil Creek and the Verde River. While there we walked up to the Verde Hot Springs. In all my years of passing by I had never detoured over to see them. The next day we drove up onto the Mogollon Rim and hiked down to the "Railroad Tunnel to no where"

The Hot Springs, on the bank of the Verde River, are the site of a resort that was built in the 1920's and burned down in 1962. All that remains today are the foundations. The water is about 100 degrees F. You reach them by hiking upstream from the old power plant about a mile.

The Railroad Tunnel was started as a project/scam in the 1880's to build a railroad line from Globe To Flagstaff. To maintain a reasonable grade, the plan was to tunnel 3500 feet or so through the Mogollon Rim. About 70 feet was actually dug. The tunnel is reached by a short but very steep hike on the old Devlin Road off of Rim Road 300.

Click on Photos to Enlarge

Mike wading the Verde	The foundations	The Main Pool
Bathhouse?	The Grand Staircase	Supports for Bridge
Campsite on Hardscrabble Mesa	Mike at the Tunnel's Portal	Stone Ruins at Tunnel